Overview
Established in 1927, Iberia Airlines operates from its headquarters based in Madrid, Spain. Its focus cities include Sevilla Airport, Alicante Airport, Tenerife North Airport, and Barcelona-El Prat Airport. With Iberia Plus for its frequent flyer program and having established an alliance with Oneworld, Iberia Airlines flies to over 110 destinations with a fleet size of at least 185 aircrafts.
Company Profile
Iberia Airlines is actually the national airline of Spain and is part of the Iberia Group, along with Iberia Regional. Iberia Regional, meanwhile, is operated by Air Nostrum, an independent carrier. Apart from transporting both passengers and freight, the Iberia Group also ventures into other related activities, like airport handling, aircraft maintenance, IT systems, as well as in-flight catering. Airlines belonging to the Iberia Group have scheduled flights to more than 102 destinations in roughly 39 countries worldwide. Through its codesharing arrangements with related companies in the industry, there is an additional number of destinations amounting to another 90.
History
Iberia Airlines was established on June 28, 1927 by Lufthansa and the financier known as Horacio Echeberrieta. On December of that same year, flight operations then commenced. After a year, the Spanish government decided to sponsor the company for the provision of postal transport between Barcelona and Madrid.
However, during Miguel Primo de Rivera’s dictatorship of Spain, aviation companies in the country were combined, thus becoming state-controlled. Iberia was then merged into the C.L.A.S.S.A. or the Compañía de Líneas Aéreas Subvencionadas S.A. and all operational flights were ceased effective May 29, 1929. The “Iberia” name, however, was still registered is when operations once again commenced, the name was retained. After the Spanish Civil War, Iberia Airlines was then transformed into a domestic airline. By September 1944, the airline was then nationalized and became the first ever airline flying between Europe and the South America after the Second World War.
Iberia Airlines Alliances and Subsidiaries
The airline owns 20% in shares of Clickair, as well as 0.95% in shares if Royal Air Maroc. Its allies include Qantas, American Airlines, British Airways, Avianca, PLUNA of Uruguay, as well as Grupo TACA. On September 1999, the company allied with Oneworld alliance as well.
Codeshare Agreements
Codeshare agreements of the airline include Cathay Pacific, Japan Airlines, and Royal Jordanian.
Iberia Airlines Destinations
- Africa: Algeria, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Mauritania, Morocco, Nigeria, Senegal, and South Africa
- Asia / Middle East: Israel
- Europe: Austria, Belgium Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, and UK
- North and Central America: Costa Rica, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Mexico, Panama, Puerto Rico, and the USA
- South America: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Uruguay, and Venezuela
